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White Chocolate Meyer Lemon Souffles To Thank You

January 28, 2009

Thank you all for stopping by in the last couple of days and offer your nice words about the awards. I am blown away by your enthusiasm, but again I should not be surprised. Now its' my turn, so this post is all about you! You are the best! A four sentence bit at the end of a post is not enough to tell you the gratitude I feel so I made you something to celebrate: White Chocolate Lemon Souffles.

Thank you for your support and dedication, your listening ear and welcoming hearts. They have made it so much fun to come here and share bits and pieces of life. I am still rubbing my eyes at everything that has happened in the last year. I also want to dedicate this celebratory dessert to my pal Jen. She knows why. If there were an award for the Best Food Blogger - Friend category, she would totally own it.

I need to clarify that I have not reached my 500th post yet but I am really close. One reader suggested that I ask you what to bake to celebrate this little milestone. I like that idea, but what I really want to know is: what is your favorite dessert to celebrate a special occasion?

I was on cloud nine all afternoon Monday and told B. as soon as he stepped foot in the house. After the initial "Honey that is great! I am so happy for you", he asked "so...what's for dinner?" Ah yes...reality check....A normal day at the house, as it should be. I like normal days, they keep me grounded, head on my shoulders and mind in the skyes. What I like is to throw a little something special into a normal day and as a mini celebration and chocolate souffles are perfect for that. I like using white chocolate sometimes as it adds a little creamy touch to a cake or a mousse. I really like it paired with stronger and bolder flavors like raspberries, lemons, passion fruits, etc...

I like all kinds of souffles, I really do, but if given the choice, I like pastry base or roux based ones. Meringue based ones are nice and decadent in their blissful layer of air but they always leave me wanting more. I am done and I already want another one...and there goes the waistline. With a more substantial base, a souffle almost turn into a comforting pillow and a good book on a cloudy day. Lemon and white chocolate together are perfect for that.

Prepare your ramekins by brushing them with butter making sure you keep your strokes vertical, it will help the soufflés rise. Dust with sugar and give the ramekins a turn so all sides are coated and shake the excess off. Refrigerate until ready to use.Preheat oven to 350F.In a saucepan set over medium high heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and salt and stir for a couple of minutes to cook the starch. Gradually add in the milk and whisk often while you bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice, zest and white chocolate and whisk until the chocolate is completely dissolved and the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the egg yolks.In a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to whip until the eggs are stiff.Fold a little of that meringue into the white chocolate mixture to lighten it up and then fold the remaining egg whites until both are completely blended making sure to leave as much air as possible. Divide the batter among the prepared ramekins and bake for 35 minutes until golden and puffy. Serve at once.

This last picture is obviously not of white chocolate souffles...These are Milk Chocolate and Chesnut Tapioca Souffles that I will tell you more about this weekend. They were highly addictive too!

A belated HUGE CONGRATULATIONS (!!!!!!) from me on your well-deserved wins, Helen! :) You were one of the bloggers that inspired me to start blogging in the first place - so thank you! :)

I am so enamored of souffles lately - they have just that touch of magic that makes a special occasion dessert, well, special. My other special occasion desserts usually involve chocolate in large proportions - I think the last "celebratory" dessert I made was David Lebovitz's Chocolate Orbit Cake. Yum!

Oh boy oh boy, favorite dessert?! I have a feeling that anything you make would become my favorite dessert, only to be kicked to the curb when I taste the next thing you make... Let's make a deal - I'll cook dinners and you make desserts - we should be neighbors, honey. You don't need to thank me. Your friendship is more than thanks enough. I *heart* you.

I don't have a specific dessert for celebrations. I like trying new recipes, so I rarely make the same thing, except for those few good 'ol recipes that are always safe bet to bring somewhere when needed. The souffles look great, I've never made those, maybe that will be what I make next for...maybe V-day!

I'm so glad I found this blog thru Jen. You inspire me and if ever there were someone that deserved an award...it's you. Thank you for all the inspiration you have given me. I've found quite a lot of fantastic people in the blogging world.

Looks divine! Just love your pictures. Aside from dessert anything Italian with wine is the best for me. But, in terms of dessert I love anything with peanut butter and dark chocolate for a fine celebration like a peanut butter mousse cake. The two combined together are just heaven!

Thanks so much for all of your fabulous recipes!! They all look just amazing!! Congratulations on winning!! You definitely deserve everything!!

Some of my favorite deserts to celebrate are creme brule, peach cobbler with real whipped cream, cheesecake with sweet raspberries, oh and white cake with raspberries and real sugary lemon icing...hmmn...I bet some of yours I need to try ASAP and those will be a favorite!! I will let you know how the White Chocolate and Lemon Souffles turn out. I really want to try this recipe...looks so gooood!! :)

I think my favorite celebratory dessert is tiramisu...although I DID have this fabulous browned butter bread pudding with pears, sour cherries, and caramel a couple weeks ago that was out of this world....

Ooh, those souffles look really good...I bet they'd taste nice and warm and sunshiney...mmm, sunshine (there is a major snowstorm going on here right now).

My favorite celebratory dessert to make is easily cupcakes...used to make them for my employees frequently. But my favorite to have made for me would be a fat, juicy peach pie. I picked that over cake for my birthday a few times growing up.

For something celebratory I would have to say making my own version of The Sacher Torte or a Flourless Chocolate Cake. But a lot of times this Southern gal does comfort food like crumb cake or a mile high apple pie or a trifle. But that's just me

Congratulations on your wins Helen, they're so deserved:-) This souffle looks fantastic! I have some meyer lemons and white chocolate sitting in the fridge, so this is going to be dessert tomorrow night:-D

A big, big, big congratulations Helen. You deserve all those awards and more. Jen deserves a super award too. Her blog is smart, funny, modern and her photos bright and evoking. When I grow up I want to be like both of you girls!

congratulations on your very well-deserved award. as for a special dessert- i always like to ask the person i'll be sharing it with a million questions about their favorite flavors, then take it from there.

there's nothing like making a dessert that someone's been dreaming about their whole life.

TWO awards, Helen! Congratulations, again. It was an honor to share one nomination with you.My favorite dessert to celebrate with? If I am dining out it is probably a molten chocolate cake, ideally with some espresso inside. For home I just made a pavlova with mounds of cream and berries, and that was pretty special. If I could have found passion fruit I would have added that as well.

Yay! Congrats to you! These souffles are adorable. For me anything chocolate is worth finding something to celebrate if I don't have something already. That said, I love the little bowls you made the souffles in....tres mignon!I love visiting your site because you are such an outside the box thinker, and it is so inspiring and refreshing. I always know there will be something special in store. Thank YOU!

I just have to say that your blog completely blows me away! What I like for dessert to celebrate a special occasion isn't half as fancy as your desserts! I love anything chocolate if that helps ...for special occasions I love white cake with chocolate frosting.

Congrats! I've recently discovered you and have been gorging myself on your beautiful desserts and photographs. I'm a novice pastry person who found your step-by-step instructions on macarons such a help (after my disastrous first attempt which were flat and 'all feet'). Today they turned out very well indeed and I'm so very proud of them (a nice big step forward for a change but no doubt to be followed by several back when I try laminate dough next!). Thanks, Helene and I look forward to many more of your posts.

Helen, congratulations on your awards. Your posts are amazing and filled with the most beautiful food. I love visiting your blog and today is no exception. These souffles have my taste buds working overtime. Lemon and white chocolate together...this is sure to be a winner!

My favorite celebration treat? Oh that's easy: CHOCOLATE CAKE! :)

And the Friend Catagory submission: Spot On! Jen gives a 110 percent in every endeavor. I found her website months ago and I am filled with gratitude to this dear woman. She educates with warmth, charm and attitude.

Congratulations, Helen-- well-done and well-deserved! :) The souffles look lovely, and worthy of the celebration :)I suppose I have never really repeated a dessert in my short cooking life, but I always wanna make cake, heh heh :)

my son's Tiramisu is usually requested (by me). For my birthday I normally make a chestnut flour layer cake with chocolate buttercream frosting which I love. I also loved making profiteroles and know that it will also be requested often.

I just made my favorite cheese soufflé (see my blog) and these dessert soufflés look fab! I love making soufflés, it is fun.

Helen, I love all things sweet - and my waistline is here to prove - but when it comes to celebrations I think nothing beats cake. I absolutely love your souffles - I have had white chocolate and lemon together in truffles and loved it.

I'm boring - cheesecake!I was unsurprised when I went to vote last week (which is where I learned you had been nominated), to see you were crushing your competition! With such beautiful pictures, mouthwatering desserts and heart felt narratives, it was no surprise to me that you were doing so well.

I would never be able to pick a favorite dessert. It really depends on my mood which, my husband might attest to, changes frequently. I love, love, love ice cream. I often make napoleons because the combinations are endless. I love tart fruit and chocolate. But my absolute favorite desserts have contrasting textures and flavors, sweet, tart, creamy, crispy.